Sealable storage containers are often used to store items such as food, medicine, and the like. Such items are potentially dangerous to if they have been contaminated before reaching the consumer. It is often difficult to determine whether the container has been previously tampered with or opened merely by examining the items themselves because many items do not provide an observable indication that they have been tampered with or contaminated.
Thus, many producers of such items package their items in such a way that a consumer may readily examine a container and determine whether the contents of the container may have been tampered with after the item was packaged within the container. Such packaging often involves a seal or other indicia, either associated with the lid, the container, or both, that is broken or otherwise altered when the container is initially opened so that the seal or indicia cannot be replaced or repaired in the same condition. Thus, a seal or indicia in a condition different from its initial condition indicates to a consumer that the contents of the container should not be used because they may have been contaminated.
Many existing lids with tamper-evident features have several disadvantages. For example, existing tamper-evident lids are often not resealable. Thus, once the tamper-evident feature has been broken, the lid does not reseal to the container. Rather, the lid has a loose fit atop the container and often falls off when the container is moved or even slightly inverted. Other existing tamper-evident lids include multiple tamper-evident features (e.g., vertical membranes, perforations, or the like), thereby making the lid more susceptible to accidental breakage of the tamper-evident feature. It would be desirable to provide a container assembly that addresses these disadvantages and provides tamper-evidence to a consumer.
The present invention advances the art providing a lid used with a container that is readily tamper evident, not susceptible to leakage and resealable.